Finding Freelancers Just Got Easier

How about another B2B on-demand service? The space already has companies that provide workspace to CFOs at a simple request, and one player in this market is upgrading its own offerings for the enterprise.

Upwork provides companies with a way to find freelancers without having to go into the talent search blindly; the firm, which holds the world’s largest pool of freelance talent, vets applicants and can land a match between employer and worker in just three days.

On Thursday (Feb. 18), the firm announced its newest services, Upwork Pro and Upwork Enterprise. Pro is a version of the tool for larger, mid-market firms, linking them with pre-screened talent pools and offering a more personalized offering. Enterprise, meanwhile, provides a way for larger companies to design their own talent pools, scaling with the company, while Upwork maintains compliance with regulations surrounding independent contractors.

In a statement, Upwork CEO Stephane Kasriel said the new tools are necessary in today’s market.

“Businesses continue to experience difficulties accessing the skills and talent they need to meet mounting demands,” the executive said. “People are central to a business; there is no more powerful competitive advantage. Upwork Pro places premium talent in the hands of mid-market companies. For large businesses looking to build a freelance workforce at scale, Upwork Enterprise provides the technology, sourcing and talent services in one solution.”

The company also cited recent research from Randstad, which found that 72 percent of human resources professionals and business leaders consider finding workers a challenge because the talent pool is lacking. Hiring behavior is also changing, with a separate study concluding that about 70 percent of companies had hired a freelancer.

That research found that some of the top benefits to doing so were hiring workers with more specialized skills, on-demand availability and faster task completion times.

Upwork has also looked at some of the financial impacts of this trend, finding that a rise in the freelance workforce is changing the way businesses compensate their staff.

Reports released last November said Upwork found that up to 81 percent of freelance workers had been paid late by their clients, with nearly half of those stating that late payments led to cash flow issues.